Overcoming performance limitations of digital back propagation due to polarization mode dispersion

In this paper, we investigate the impact of the stochastic nature of local fiber birefringence on nonlinear compensation techniques in non-dispersion managed transmission links. We describe the beneficial mechanism of a low-complex modification of the well-known digital back propagation (DBP) technique, which is based on single measurements of accumulated differential group delay (DGD) and principal states of polarization (PSP) at the receiver. Furthermore, we discuss limits of the DBP capability to increase spectral efficiency and reach distance, and compare exemplary application cases.